The 1st Thursday of every month at 7:00pm in the Learning Arts Center.

How cast armor texture can be added to plastic

For the evening's demo, Will showed how cast armor texture can be added to plastic. This is most often needed on parts of older kits which were molded without texture, or when replacing texture that was either too pronounced or was lost during assembly due to sanding, etc. He writes: Before beginning, you must determine if your subject in fact needs to have texture added. As a general rule (consult your references!), vehicle armor that is formed from large flat slabs has very little texture, especially in scale. However, nearly all curved items (i.e. gun mantlets, one-piece turrets, some glacis plates) have a noticeable texture to them. This texture ranges from relatively minor (German gun mantlets) to very pronounced (most Soviet WWII castings). To apply the texture, use a cut-down paintbrush (or cheap metal-handle epoxy brush with stiff bristles) and liquid cement (I have found that Testors works best). Apply the liquid cement to a section of the area you wish to texture - it is better to work in sections as the glue dries quickly. While the area is softened, stipple it with the `work' brush. The surface will become roughened - how rough depends on several things - the softness of the plastic, the amount of glue used, the force used in the stippling, etc. When you have treated the area, repeat the process on the next section. Once the selected part is finished, set it aside for at least a couple of hours so that the glue has plenty of time to dry and the plastic can cure. Once dry, compare the texture you have added to that which you are trying to achieve. If it is insufficient, repeat the process. If it matches or is a bit overboard, you are fine. Take a very light grade of sandpaper or fine steel wool to the surface. Your goal here is to remove the sharpest `peaks' you created, along with any plastic `strings' or the like. Sanding is used to clean up the appearance and tone-down (if necessary) the texture you have applied so that it matches your goal. Practice will help you gain confidence is achieving the look you are after. The addition of this detail will definitely be noticeable after the weathering process, and even better, it's basically free.